Iran: Regime Analyst Acknowledges PMOI Operation Near Khamenei Compound
After a long time of denial and downgrading the situation, a regime-affiliated political analyst publicly referred to the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) operation near Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s compound in Tehran days before the outbreak of war, offering one of the clearest acknowledgments by a figure linked to the Iranian establishment of the February 23 clashes. After long time of denial and downplaying the news, a regime-affiliated political analyst has publicly referred to a PMOI/MEK operation near Iran's now-dead Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s compound in Tehran just days before the outbreak of war. The remarks amount to one of the… https://t.co/zHFgs9WoXz pic.twitter.com/tT8VAYvKy9 — SIMAY AZADI TV (@en_simayazadi) June 3, 2026 In remarks published in recent days on the Iran Talk channel, regime analyst Mehdi Kharatian referred to what he described as an operation carried out by the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) against Khamenei’s compound on February 23, 2026, just days before the start of the war. Kharatian said: “You can see that three or four days before the war, we had the PMOI attack on the Leader’s compound. An attack took place four or five days before the war.” The comments appear to refer to the large-scale clashes reported on February 23 around the Motahari Complex in central Tehran, which houses Khamenei’s headquarters along with the offices of several key state institutions, including the office of Mojtaba Khamenei, the Supreme National Security Council, the Guardian Council, and other senior government bodies. During the discussion, host Mohammad Fazeli noted that only fragmented reports had initially emerged about the incident. “Some incomplete reports came out,” Fazeli said. Kharatian replied: “Yes, the organization itself announced it.” He then claimed that many participants had been captured or killed before they could leave the area. “Before they could get out, they were immediately dealt with—arrested or killed. The system had understood what was happening and reacted immediately.” The remarks are notable because Iranian authorities have largely avoided publicly discussing the details of the February 23 operation. At the time, the PMOI announced that hundreds of its members had participated in an operation targeting Khamenei’s heavily fortified headquarters. The organization said more than 100 members were killed, wounded, or detained during clashes with security forces, while others managed to withdraw from the area. It later released the names of detainees and missing individuals and said the information had been submitted to the United Nations Special Rapporteur and international human rights organizations. The PMOI also called on UN officials and international observers to seek access to detainees and verify reports of those killed during the operation. According to the organization, additional names of arrested, missing, and deceased participants were later submitted to international bodies as documentation efforts continued. Kharatian’s comments come amid a broader crackdown on individuals accused of links to the PMOI. In recent weeks, families of political prisoners and PMOI supporters have reportedly been summoned and interrogated by Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence, while relatives of executed prisoners have faced threats and pressure. Since July 2025, ten PMOI members have been executed, including Hamed Validi and Mohammad Massoum-Shahi on April 20, 2026, as well as Vahid Baniamerian, Pouya Ghobadi, Babak Alipour, Mohammad Taghavi, Akbar Daneshvarkar, and Abolhassan Montazer. Kharatian’s remarks represent one of the most direct acknowledgments by a regime-affiliated commentator that a significant confrontation took place around Khamenei’s compound shortly before the outbreak of war, an event that Iranian authorities have largely refrained from discussing publicly.
